Families Plant Adopted Trees For Better Environment And Future

Twenty families from social organization Brave Bright Behaviour and Beautiful (B4) drove to Cibodas in Bogor, West Java, on Saturday, to plant adopted trees, in the hopes of producing fresher air for the future. “We want to help the adopted tree concept gain popularity. With this concept, we can ensure our trees grow well,” club member Inna Irwin told The Jakarta Post.

The club members planted Puspa and Rasamala trees in Mandala Wangi Park, a part of Mount Gede Pangrango National Park Cibodas that spans 22,851 hectares of land. Ade Hidayat, a forest ecosystem control officer at the national park, said the two species had once been plentiful in the area, and could both live up to 300 years. “After reaching 10 years, the trees can provide 1.2 kilograms of oxygen,” he said, adding a person needed 0.5 kilograms of oxygen.

Zul Zainuddin, another officer, said adopting a tree cost Rp 108,000, which would be used to pay local people in the area who would take care of the trees for three years. He said the foster parents of the tree could monitor the growth of the tree by browsing a specific coordinate on google map. “The tree adoption will provide a memory and sense of belonging for the foster parents, which will help preserve the forest.”

Zul hoped the club members could inspire their children, relatives and friends to adopt more trees. “I think this idea should also be applied in Jakarta because it needs more trees,” said John Bech, an Australian who had lived with his Indonesian wife in Jakarta for four years. All members of the club also used the day to discuss future agendas. Founded in December 2009, the club aims to facilitate sharing and social activities.

Tarcisia Maria Supraptiwi, 44, said most of wives of the club members had formerly belonged to an organization for mixed-marriage couples. That organization was formed to organize social activities and share experiences tackling bureucratic uncertainty for the couples. “Laws for mixed-marriage couples are unclear. There isn’t a government body can answer all of our questions, which is why experience sharing is very important for us.”